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Beth C. Manusov, 35; worked against breast cancer

Beth Cravitz Manusov, 35, of Elkins Park, who, after having both breasts removed in her 20s to fight cancer, worked to educate women about early detection and to raise money for research, died of bacterial meningitis March 19 at Abington Memorial Hospital.

Beth Cravitz Manusov, with daughter Hannah
Beth Cravitz Manusov, with daughter HannahRead more

Beth Cravitz Manusov, 35, of Elkins Park, who, after having both breasts removed in her 20s to fight cancer, worked to educate women about early detection and to raise money for research, died of bacterial meningitis March 19 at Abington Memorial Hospital.

Mrs. Manusov, the mother of a 20-month-old daughter, Hannah, was 30 weeks pregnant when she was admitted to the hospital March 17, complaining of an earache. "Two hours later, Beth coded and went into a coma," said her father, Steve Cravitz.

Her child was delivered by Cesarean section almost immediately. "The doctors performed brain surgery on Beth, but she never revived," her father said.

After a baby-naming ceremony at Mrs. Manusov's bedside for Baylin Payge, who weighed 3 pounds, 7 ounces, life support was removed from Mrs. Manusov. She died two days later.

Beth Cravitz was a cheerleader and bright student at Cherry Hill High School East. After graduating in 1990, she earned two bachelor's degrees in 1994, in economics and in art history, from Lafayette College in Easton, Pa.

She moved to Center City and became a certified public accountant for Deloitte & Touche in 1994. Two years later, she became an auditor for Campbell Soup Co. in Camden. In 1998, the year she was diagnosed with cancer, she was working for the Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust. While getting ready for bed one night, she felt a lump in one of her breasts. She had gotten a clear checkup two months earlier, so she was not too concerned. The lump, however, turned out to be cancerous and she had a mastectomy.

After being told two years later that she had a genetic predisposition to breast cancer, she had a second mastectomy - and became an activist. "I did not want to go back to my normal life," she said in a 2001 Inquirer article. She encouraged young women, who were not ordinarily considered at great risk for cancer, to become more aware, to perform self-examinations and to get help early.

Mrs. Manusov used her accounting skills to help organize fund-raisers for cancer research.

She was pledge chairman for the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure, volunteered with the Linda Creed Breast Cancer Foundation and Philadelphia Relay for Life and organized dinners for families at the Ronald McDonald House in West Philadelphia.

In 2001, she participated in the World Dragon Boat Racing Championship in a boat crewed mostly by breast-cancer survivors.

With hopes of becoming a teacher, Mrs. Manusov earned a master's in education in 2002 from Arcadia University in Glenside. While waiting for a full-time teaching job, she substituted in the Abington School District for several years.

In 2004, she married Michael Manusov and the couple settled in Elkins Park. She continued volunteering for cancer causes, but turned most of her attention to raising her daughter.

Services were private.

In addition to her husband, two daughters and father, Mrs. Manusov is survived by her mother, Pat Cravitz; younger sister, Traci Cravitz, who developed the disease in 2004 and underwent a double mastectomy; grandmothers Marie Luckiewicz and Jean Cravitz; and a nephew.